Preview: Jacub Gagnon and Kevin Peterson at Thinkspace

Though their subject matter has little overlap, painters Jacub Gagnon and Kevin Peterson both have a deft hand for rendering photorealistic details that makes them aesthetically complementary to one another for their upcoming solo shows at Thinkspace Gallery in Culver City. Opening on November 3, Jacub Gagnon’s “More Human than Human” and Kevin Peterson’s “Amended” provide an intriguing look at how realism can be used to evoke and manipulate emotions. Focusing on baroque representations of animals surrounded by lush ornamentation, Gagnon’s works seduce us with their unlikely juxtapositions of wit and luxury. Meanwhile, Peterson’s paintings of children in desolate, graffitied urban landscapes question the concept of beauty and innocence through an interrogation of the feeling of isolation. Take a look at a sneak peek of the works in the show below.